I have been helping small to medium sized businesses reach the top of the major search engines for over ten years now. Initially clients simply look to be at the top of Google however my focus is always on how do we generate more leads, sales, bookings, memberships etc. Of course being at the top of Google is important however for the vast majority of small businesses it is not enough.
It never ceases to amaze me how clients who are exceptional offline marketeers seem to think online marketing is different? There are traditional, proven, tried and tested methods when it comes to offline marketing and these principles are exactly the same online.
Over the coming weeks it is my aim to help all small business owners become search engine marketing experts and I will be posting advice and help on reaching the top of Google but before I get into this you should have a good hard look at your web site. My belief is that there are four basic stages to online success:
Traffic - Top of the search engines using natural optimisation would be the main source here
Functional Web Site - When a visitor lands on your web site do they get what they were looking for? Do they get to the right page quickly? Is your message or offer clear? Can they navigate the site easily? Where appropriate have you taken quality pictures of your products and or facilities?
Data Capture - Have you made it easy for your clients to buy? If they don’t buy have you made it easy for them to leave their details? Have you made it easy for them to ask for more information? (having a little contact us at the top or bottom of your site which opens a long web response form or even worse Outlook Express is no where near good enough). Your data capture needs to be bold, varied, easy to use and if you have a telephone number on the site don’t hide it make it stand out.
Lead Management Software - Once you have gathered information from a potential client via your web site how do you handle this effectively? It is essential you can respond to your opportunities by email or text, filter your leads for targeted campaigns, prospect system to diaries reminders and call backs.
Be completely brutal when it comes to looking at your site and imagine you were a new customer - would you want to buy? Is it easy for you to do so? Do you want to leave your details? Have you been given a reason to leave your details? Are you giving too much information to your clients do they need to ask for anything else? I have produced a short video as a Beginners SEO Guide.
Web Designers are typically not marketeers and so their focus tends to be on the look of the site and the latest technology rather than focusing on whether the site actually does enough business.
I will address each of the four factors over the coming posts and please remember if you find any of the advice I give useful please consider making a donation to the young Olympic Judo Athletes at Camberley (donations can be made via Rocketfish Limited). I will post details of how to do this soon.
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